I’m excited to share that Remember Not is a finalist in The North Texas Romance Writers of America Chapter Great Expectations Writing Contest 2018. This is our first contest entry for 2018 in the inspirational category. The process of entering was easy and the contest coordinator, Amanda Byrd, is super helpful.

Why Do I Enter Contests?

Wins are not the real reason I enter a writing contest. Feedback from contests provides valuable help to writers. Great Expectations uses very good judges. I received helpful advice for Remember Not from three published authors who were trained as judges.

Great Expectations was the first contest ever for the second story in my series, Engaging. I couldn’t wait to find out how Engaging stacked up and whether it held the judges interest. It was rewarding that the judges were enthusiastic about Engaging’s opening and conflict. That puts us on the right track for a good story.

Having two works judged by the same criteria gave me the opportunity to evaluate my weak and strong points in writing. Engaging had different judges than Remember Not, but was judged with the same score sheet. Comparing the two sets of sheets showed me what I need to work on in general when writing future manuscripts. It also gave me a confidence boost to see equal scores in many areas for both entries.

The best news? Engaging’s score was very close to Remember Not’s score.

Spring is a good time for writing contests. It’s also a good time for riding horses. I’m looking forward to spending time with my equine buddies. Which do you do? Do you write? Or do you ride? If you get to do both, you’re extra blessed.